Medicine in britain Flashcards
What was the black death?
An outbreak of the bubonic plague that was spread by flea bites and resulting in a swift and painful death.
What did people think caused it?
1) God was deserting mankind as punishment for sins.
2) People believed that miasma was a reason
3) In Europe, many blamed the Jewish population (although this was not the case in England).
What was done to try to prevent and treat it?
1) Confession of sins, asking God’s forgiveness and prayer.
2) Bleeding and purging were tried by physicians.
3) Lighting a fire or boiling vinegar. Physicians would also try lancing (piercing) buboes.
4) Prayer, fasting, making pilgrimages and self-flagellation.
5) People also fled the plague or carried floral posies of flowers and herbs to smell.
6) People were also advised to avoid bathing.
How did the government demonstrate better handling of the Great Plague in 1665 compared to 300 years earlier during the Black Death?
1) King Charles II made a list of actions try and stop the spread of the plague which were then carried out by local governments.
2) Fairs & large funerals were banned. Theatres were closed. streets were cleaned. Fires were burned to drive away miasma. Cats, dogs and pigeons were killed if seen on the street.
3) Infected households were quarantined or directed to the pest house and carts would collect the bodies of the deceased every day.
What was the great plague?
A serious outbreak of plague lasted from June to November in 1665. In September there were 7000 deaths recorded in one week and across the whole outbreak 100,000 Londoners died (1/5th). The disease was spread by fleas carried on rats.
What did people think caused it?
1) Astrology – the unusual alignment of Saturn and Jupiter in October 1664 and of Mars and Saturn on 12th November 1664 combined with the observance of a comet.
2) God’s punishment – the plague was the result of man’s wickedness and God was using it to clean up his kingdom.
3) Miasma – created by the stinking rubbish and dunghills. The vapour would stay in the oil as long as the weather was cold but when it became warm the vapour would pour out the earth as a plague-carrying miasma. This fitted the pattern of infection as plague outbreaks generally occurred when the weather was warmer.
4) Other people – the realisation that plague was contagious and would spread from person to person
What was done to try to prevent and treat it?
1) Sweating – patients advised by physicians to be wrapped in thick woollen blankets and laid by a fire.
2) Transference – strapping a live chicken to a bubo, lancing buboes with a feather plucked from a live chicken.
3) Herbal remedies – medicines, poultices or rubs made from plants.
4) Prayer and repentance.
5) Pomanders – a ball containing perfumed substances to be carried to drive away miasma.
6) Government action - Public meetings, fairs and large funerals were banned. People were quarantined. Theatres were closed and streets and alleyways were cleaned. Fires were burned on street corners to drive away miasma and cats, dogs and pigeons were killed if seen on the street. Infected households were quarantined or directed to the pest house and carts would collect the bodies of the deceased every day.
What caused lung cancer rates to go up?
Cigarette smoking which had been promoted through aggressive advertising by tobacco companies after the First World War.
What high-tech treatments have been developed to help the fight against lung cancer?
Transplants, radiotherapy, chemotherapy.
What public health related decisions the government made to try to prevent people from smoking?
Banned smoking in workplaces and public places in 2007. Banned smoking in cars when carrying children under the age of 18 in 2015. Raised the legal age for buying tobacco from 16 to 18 in 2007. Increased taxation on tobacco products. Ban on tobacco advertising. Campaigns to advertise the dangers of smoking. No cigarette products must be put on display in shops.
